


Keith is the Most Endearing Thirteen-Year-Old

by moretrash



Series: Dads of Marmora [40]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Big Brother Matt, Big Brother Shiro (Voltron), Dads of Marmora (Voltron), Everyone is so soft to teenage Keith and honestly? He deserves it, Featuring the headcanon that Keith thought Lance's name was 'taylor', Foster Care, Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Hunk (Voltron) is a Good Friend, Hunk (Voltron) is so Pure, Lactose Intolerant Keith (Voltron), Past Child Neglect, Pidge | Katie Holt is a Good Friend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-05
Updated: 2018-08-05
Packaged: 2019-06-22 01:45:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,753
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15571005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moretrash/pseuds/moretrash
Summary: Keith's luck can be the worst sometimes.It certainly is when he's turned into his teenage self by a druid.





	Keith is the Most Endearing Thirteen-Year-Old

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt:
> 
> "Yes. But can we get another one where Keith is Like... Older like 12 and thinks he got abducted by aliens. And only trusts Shiro. (And like maybe Krolia but he cant explain that one) and it's just Angst for the pack cause Keith doesn't trust them *at first. He sleeps alone (or with Krolia either way) and it's a story of everyone realized how shit is childhood is"

Antok had no idea what had happened.

One minute, he had been sneaking around a Galra ship with Keith in tow, his kit having gotten quite good at his stealth skills. Keith had been sticking close to him to ensure that he didn’t get lost or caught by the personnel on the ship.

Keith had looked over and gasped, jumping in front of Antok as he saw a druid with a bottle of a clear, thick liquid. Antok turned around and his eyes widened when he saw Keith. He tried to shove Keith aside, but he was too late as the masked druid grabbed Keith and forced the liquid into Keith’s mouth. He could see Keith trying not to swallow, but the druid was stroking his throat to get him to swallow against his will. He could see Keith’s eyes, wide with fear and flickering over to Antok. 

Then, there was a small boy. Very clearly still Keith, but he no longer had his Galra features. He looked like he had prior to his Galra transformation, but smaller, with a round, babyish face and big purple eyes. He was short, and his blade uniform hung off of him as he struggled in the druid’s arms. Antok growled and slashed at the druid until they let Keith go, shoving the boy behind him protectively. He sliced through the druid and watched it collapse, turning to Keith.

“Kit, are you okay?” Antok asked, reaching out to grab onto Keith. However, Keith took one look at him and shrieked at the top of his lungs, struggling as Antok picked him up. He kicked at Antok in an attempt to get him to let got of him, grunting with the effort it took. 

“Kit, calm down, it’s me, Antok.” Antok said, rumbling to Keith as he made his way to their pod. 

“No! I don’t know you! Let go of me!” Keith shouted. Antok paused in shock and frowned, continuing his rumbling and being rewarded with Keith relaxing slightly. He got into the pod and set Keith down, guiding them to the castle of lions where the rest of their pack was awaiting them. The rest of the pack had gone there early with the intention of discussing some matters with the paladins, and had arranged for Keith and Antok to arrive after their mission. 

“Keith, settle down. I will not hurt you.” Antok said, but Keith scrambled away from him and glared. Antok sighed sadly as he landed the pod in the hangar of the castle of lions. It took a bit to get Keith into his arms, and Keith immediately resumed his screaming and kicking. Antok had taken much harsher blows than a small child kicking at him, but somehow it hurt worse knowing that it was his kit, who no longer trusted him.

He carried Keith off of the pod, not struggling to keep Keith in his arms. He weighed much less than he did normally, and he could have weighed five pounds for how easy it was for Antok to carry him. 

Keith’s pack came forward, curiously looking at Keith. Keith looked over at them and shrieked, struggling in Antok’s arms with more effort than he had been before. Thace leaned forward and nuzzled at Keith in confusion, making a questioning noise. 

“What happened to him, Antok?” Ulaz asked. He tried to grab onto Keith to check for injuries, but was promptly kicked away. 

“A druid turned him into a child, I believe. He does not know who we are.” Antok said. Kolivan frowned and lifted Keith from Antok’s arms, setting him down and watching sadly as Keith ran to the other side of the room. 

“Well, then we shouldn’t keep scaring him by grabbing him.” He said. Krolia made a soft, distressed noise and looked over as the paladins entered the room. 

Keith’s eyes widened when he saw Shiro. He knew that it was definitely Shiro, but it wasn’t the Shiro that he remembered. The Shiro he remembered wasn’t so tired-looking. When had Shiro gotten a white tuft of hair, and since when did he have a metal arm and a scar across his nose? Since when had Shiro been so fit? Don’t get Keith wrong, the Shiro he remembered wasn’t unfit by any stretch of the imagination, but he certainly hadn’t had defined muscles.

He looked over and saw Matt, but not the Matt that he knew. Since when had Matt had a scar on his cheek, and where were his glasses? What was he wearing? 

Keith tensed when he saw people who looked very similar to older versions of Hunk and Lance, two classmates that he knew he had at the Garrison. He also saw a shorter person, closer to his height, who looked very similar to Matt. Perhaps they were the little sister Matt had told him about?

“Shiro?” He called out hesitantly. Shiro’s eyes snapped over in the direction of Keith’s location, his eyes widening when he saw Keith.

Shiro knew immediately that the boy in front of him was Keith. He thought of the short boy who wore a slightly oversized red hoodie, in the odd in-between phase of sizes where the size down was too small, but the size he wore was slightly too big. The boy who had a discipline problem, but who Shiro had invited to the Garrison to be a student. He thought of the boy who became like a little brother to himself and Matt. 

“Keith? Keith, come here, what happened?” He asked, crouching down to Keith’s height as he ran over and clung to him, no doubt relieved to see a familiar face in such a frightening environment. 

“I don’t know. Shiro, where are we?” He asked. Shiro frowned and looked over at Antok.

“What happened?” He asked. Antok frowned.

“I am unsure myself. A druid turned him into a… child? He does not remember his pack.” Antok said. Shiro nodded and turned back to Keith, rubbing his arm soothingly.

“Keith, I promise that everything is okay. I want you to calm down and I’ll explain what I can to you.” Shiro said. Keith nodded and looked around, seeming to relax a bit now that he was with people he knew. Shiro turned to Pidge and sighed.

“Pidge, it looks like your clothes will come pretty close to fitting him. Can you please go get Keith something to wear?” He asked. Pidge nodded and trotted out of the room. Matt came over and crouched down with Keith, smiling gently at him.

“That was Pidge, my little sibling. I told you about them, you remember?” Matt said. Keith nodded and glanced down at his feet.

“Yeah, I remember.” Keith said. Matt nodded and sat down with Keith and Shiro as they waited for Pidge to come back. 

PIdge walked in a few minutes later, holding a bundle of clothes. They had tried to stick with the red and black color scheme that they knew Keith liked, so they chosen a plain red t-shirt, a pair of black cargo shorts, and a grey hoodie. They had also grabbed a pair of socks for him, knowing how cold the floors felt against bare feet, as well as a pair of sweatpants for Keith to sleep in.

“Here you go, Keith.” They said, handing the boy the bundle of clothes. Keith mumbled his thanks and looked around in confusion. Shiro smiled and helped Keith up.

“There’s a bathroom down the hall you can change in, Keith.” He said. Keith looked up and Shiro and nodded, mumbling quietly. It took Shiro a moment to be able to make out what Keith was saying, but it was normal from what he could remember of the boy at the age that he was at.

“Of course, Keith.” He said, urging Keith out of the room with a small, encouraging pat on the back.

“What’d he ask, if you don’t mind me asking?” Hunk asked. Shiro looked over and smiled.

“Oh, he mumbles a lot, that’s normal. He was just asking if he could take a shower too.” He explained. Hunk nodded and sighed.

“So, what are we going to do? He only remembers you and Matt.” Lance said.

“Well, we should explain things to him as best we can. He’ll only get more anxious if he has no idea how he got here. Then, we should try to find a solution to this. Sorry, Kolivan, but he may not trust you enough to sleep in your nest.” Matt said. Kolivan nodded in understanding and sighed sadly. 

-

It was fifteen minutes later that Keith entered the room again, dressed in the clothes that Pidge had given him. Shiro smiled and let Keith stick close to him.

“Alright, Keith. This is a long story, but to put it shortly, I went on a mission into space with Matt and Matt’s dad, and we got abducted by aliens called Galra. I escaped their prison and went back to Earth, and me, Lance, Hunk, you, and Pidge went into space again in a giant blue lion. We found other lions and form a giant fighting robot called Voltron.” Shiro explained. Keith nodded, blinking in confusion.

“No, that’s not possible. Just yesterday we were going out on the hoverbikes, remember? You couldn’t have gone into space.” Keith said. Shiro sighed sadly and wrapped an arm around Keith’s shoulder. He had no idea how to convince Keith that his story was true, but he knew how difficult the story could be to hear if you were a kid. Keith pressed close to Shiro’s side, calm enough to focus on his pack without screaming in fear. He stared at Krolia and Acxa for a long time, tilting his head before looking at Thace and Ulaz.

“Are you hurt, Keith? I am a doctor, I could help you if you are injured.” Ulaz said. Keith glanced down at himself and slowly shook his head.

“No, I think I’m fine.” He said. Ulaz nodded and leaned his head against Thace’s shoulder. Keith looked over at Kolivan and Antok next, staring at them for a while before glancing at Regris. He had no idea what to make of the large purple cat-giants. 

Shiro glanced over at Keith and noticed the nervous fidgeting Keith did when he needed something but didn’t want to admit it.

“Do you need anything, Keith?” He asked. Keith jumped and looked up at him, clearly having forgotten that Shiro could pick up on his nervous fidgeting.

“I’m hungry.” Keith said after a few moments. Shiro smiled and led Keith to the kitchen, smiling when he saw Coran. Coran looked at Keith and smiled.

“Hello, Keith, my boy!” He greeted in his usual cheery, slightly loud tone. Keith jumped and pressed closer to Shiro.

“Keith, everything’s fine. This is Coran, he’s an Altean. He won’t hurt you.” Shiro said. Coran nodded and looked down at Keith.

“Indeed, I won’t hurt you. In fact, no one on this castle will hurt you.” Coran said. Keith nodded and gasped in surprise when he saw the neon green food goo.

“What’s that?” He asked. Shiro looked up and smiled.

“We call this food goo. It has nutrients that we need. It’s kind of bland, though.” Shiro said, setting a plate of the goo in front of Keith. Keith picked up his spoon and started eating, making a face at the bizarre taste at first before digging in. Hunk came in and smiled.

“Hey, Keith!” He said brightly. Keith looked over and tilted his head, staring at Hunk for a few moments. He glanced at Shiro and then back at Hunk. To Keith, Hunk looked a lot like the classmate that he had that had been kind to him before joining up with Lance.

“Hey.” Keith answered. Shiro took the plate from Keith and put it in the dishwasher when Keith was done, glancing at him.

“You want something to do?” He asked. Keith nodded slowly and kicked his feet lightly. Shiro nodded and thought for a moment, tapping his fingers against the counter in thought.

“Well, I’m sure Matt is working on a project of some sort. You could always go wander around the castle, too, if you want. I know the Galra, the purple aliens you met, are eager to meet you.” Shiro said. Keith nodded and got up, wandering off. 

Keith wandered down the halls of the castle, looked around with wide eyes as he looked around. Out of curiosity, he opened one of the doors and froze when he saw all of the Galra in what looked like a blanket fort. 

“Hello, kit.” Keith heard the one with the red markings say. Keith frowned.

“What is a kit?” He asked. Kolivan smiled patiently.

“A kit is a term for a Galran child.” Kolivan explained. Keith nodded and stood awkwardly at the doorway. He glanced at Krolia again, tilting his head. She looked very similar to him, and Keith couldn’t help but wonder. It was impossible, though, he was human. He wasn’t an alien. His mother had just left, and his father had died in a fire. 

“I’m sorry to intrude. I didn’t know this was your room.” Keith said. 

“It is no problem, kit. You are welcome anytime.” Thace said. Keith nodded and left, continuing down the hall. He tilted his head when he saw Pidge working on her laptop.

“What are you working on?” He asked before he could stop himself. Pidge looked up and smiled.

“I’m working on some codes.” They said. Keith nodded and sighed. Pidge nodded as though they understood.

“Yeah, I know you’re still confused why you’re not at home.” Pidge said. Keith blinked and shrugged.

“I don’t have a home.” He said. Pidge startled and looked up in alarm.

“What do you mean you don’t have a home?” They asked, sounding almost offended. “Everyone has a home in some way.” Keith shrugged.

“Well, I don’t.” He said. Shiro came in to talk to Pidge and overheard part of their conversation, sighing sadly.

Shiro stepped forward and put a hand on Keith’s shoulder when the boy yawned.

“You have a room here, Keith. You should go to bed.” He said. Keith nodded and followed Shiro to a bedroom.

“Matt and I’s bedroom is just down the hall. Don’t hesitate to come get one of us if you need anything.” Shiro said, leaving the room. Keith changed from the cargo pants into the sweatpants and climbed into the bed, struggling to fall asleep. He stared up at the ceiling in the dark, unable to fall asleep. He had no idea where he was or how he got there, and he was scared when he actually thought about it. 

-

“Matt?” Pidge asked, walking into the room where Matt was working on a project for the rebels. Their older brother looked up and smiled.

“Hey Pidge.” He said.

“Why didn’t you tell any of us that Keith didn’t have a home?” Pidge asked. They wished they had known, wished they had known how to make Keith feel like he had a permanent family among the paladins. 

“I did tell you, Pidge.” Matt said, tilting his head. Pidge frowned and blinked in confusion.

“When did you tell me?” They asked. Matt chuckled and shook his head fondly.

“Before the Kerberos mission. You know, I told you about the orphan kid that Shiro had all but adopted? His name was Keith? Did you not connect the dots?” Matt said with a smile. Pidge froze. Now that they thought about it, they did recall Matt telling his family about he and Shiro’s life at the Garrison, and mentioning an orphan that Shiro was mentoring and had all but adopted. 

“That makes so much sense.” Pidge mumbled. Matt laughed and pulled Pidge into a hug. 

-

Keith sat up after half an hour of trying to sleep. He could feel his stomach turning uncomfortably, and he wondered if the food goo he had been given had milk in it. He was lactose intolerant, so it would make sense why he felt so bad. But Shiro knew that he was lactose intolerant and made an effort to make sure Keith ate things that either didn’t have any milk or cream or had a lactose-free substitute in it. In Keith’s opinion, the effort wasn’t necessary, he had always just eaten things as they were and dealt with the effects later. Shiro had looked absolutely horrified when Keith had said that, though. 

Keith left the room and wandered down to the hall, stopping as he thought about what to do. On one hand, he wanted to be near Shiro. He thought that made him sound clingy, but he was scared. He wanted to be near the people he recognized and felt safe around. At the same time, he knew that the light-colored alien he saw had said he was a doctor and would be happy to help him if he had any problem. 

“Kit?” Keith looked up when he heard a voice calling to him. He saw the lady alien that had looked very similar to him. “Are you okay?” She asked gently. Keith stared up at her and tilted his head.

“You look like me, a little bit.” He said. Krolia smiled and nodded.

“Yes, I do, kit.” Krolia said. 

“Why?” Keith asked. 

“Because I’m related to you, kit.” Krolia said, seeing no reason not to tell the truth. Keith froze and slowly shook his head. 

“No. I’m not an alien! I’m not!” He said. Krolia smiled and knelt down to Keith’s height.

“I know you don’t believe it, kit, and I understand why, but I promise you are. You know the knife that your dad gave you?” She asked. Keith nodded and pulled it out of his back pocket, looking down at it. 

“How’d you know about it?” Keith asked, his tone turning accusing. Krolia smiled patiently.

“Because I was the one that gave it to your dad for him to give to you.” Krolia said. She could almost see the gears turning in Keith’s head as the boy glanced between the knife and Krolia. 

“Mom?” He asked softly, glancing up at Krolia. Krolia smiled and nodded, reaching out to Keith. Keith clung onto her hand and shuffled closer, clinging to the hem of her shirt. Krolia pulled Keith into her arms, giving Keith every opportunity to pull away. Keith leaned against her shoulder and clung on, silent. Krolia sat back and hugged Keith properly, whispering soothing nothings to him. 

“Why were you just standing in the hallway, kit?” She asked. Keith was silent for a moment as he clung to Krolia, as if trying to memorize her appearance in case she left again. 

“I didn’t feel that well.” Keith said. Krolia nodded and sighed sympathetically. 

“Oh, kit, I’m sorry. I can take you to Ulaz, he’s the doctor Galra you met.” She said. Keith nodded a bit and tightened his grip on Krolia’s shirt.

“You’ll stay with me, right?” He asked shyly.

“Absolutely, my kit.” Krolia said, gathering Keith in her arms and standing up. It wasn’t hard to carry Keith, it would always be easy to lift him since he was smaller and lighter than a Galra. But, she couldn’t help but think that he felt a little too light for her liking. He carried him to the pack nest, attracting the attention of her pack. Keith seemed to shrink under the attention. Krolia tried to hand him off to Ulaz, but Keith panicked and hissed, curling his fingers and toes into Krolia’s shirt in the same way a Galran kit would to cling to someone. Krolia smiled and patted Keith’s back reassuringly.

“Shh, settle down my kit, I won’t let go of you if you don’t want me to.” Krolia said softly, humming quietly to Keith until he loosened his grip and relaxed. She sat down and adjusted Keith in her lap so that Ulaz could examine him. 

“Keith, do you know who everyone is?” Krolia asked. Keith slowly shook his head and leaned against Krolia, clearly feeling a lot safer when he was pressed close to her. Krolia smiled and nodded.

“Well, the man with the white tufts of his ears is Thace. He’s Ulaz’s mate. The big guy is Antok. He’s intimidating, but he’s a huge softie. The man with the red markings is Kolivan. He’s Antok’s mate and the leader of a Galran rebel organization that you’ll join when you’re older. The one who looks really excited to meet you is Regris. He’s pretty excitable but he’s gentle. The girl you always see with me is your sister, Acxa.” Krolia said. Keith perked up and looked up at Krolia.

“I have a sister?” He asked. Krolia smiled and nodded, running her hand through Keith’s hair as Ulaz examined him. Keith hissed whenever Ulaz tried to grab a tool to measure his temperature, but Ulaz knew that he wasn’t a big fan of doctors or medical processes. 

“It just seems like nerves that’s making him feel sick.” Ulaz said. Krolia nodded and pulled Keith close, humming quietly. Keith clung to her as she got up.

“Do you want to rest in here or in your own bedroom, kit?” She asked. Keith thought for a moment.

“In… in my own room, please.” He mumbled. Krolia nodded.

“Of course, kit.” She said, carrying Keith to his room and laying him down in the bed, tucking the blankets over him and smoothing them out. She was just about to leave when she felt Keith latch onto her shirt.

“Please stay?” He asked, sounding shy and vulnerable. Krolia smiled and sat down on the bed.

“Of course, my kit. I’ll stay with you as long as you want me to.” Krolia said gently, running her fingers through Keith’s hair until the boy fell asleep.

-

The next morning, Matt went to go wake Keith up and smiled when he saw Krolia sitting on the bed, fast asleep with Keith’s head in her lap. He reached over and nudged Keith’s shoulder until the boy woke up.

“Keith, time to wake up, bud. Hunk made a tasty breakfast.” Matt said. Keith sat up and shook his head to get his long hair out of his eyes. He looked over at Krolia and then at Matt, smiling sleepily.

“I met my mom last night, Matt.” He said. Matt smiled and nodded, patting Keith’s back as he got up.

“That’s great, buddy. I’m happy for you.” He said, shaking Krolia until she woke up as well. It didn’t take long to wake her up; since she had had Acxa, she woke up much easier in case any of her kits needed anything. She looked over at Keith and smiled, ruffling his hair and following him into the dining room. 

Hunk seemed to have managed to make some sort of pancakes with yogurt. Of course, he didn’t have access to the normal process of making yogurt, but it was pretty close. He had been up most of the night, planning what to do about Keith being 13 with the rest of the paladins, so he completely forgot about the fact that Keith was lactose intolerant and set a serving of the yogurt on Keith’s plate. Keith was too shy to tell Hunk about the problem, and he didn’t want to look rude by not eating it, so he ate all of his food without complaint. 

Boy, did he regret that.

It was an hour later and he was miserable. He was curled up in his room, clutching at his cramping stomach. He slowly got up and shuffled his way to the lounge, where he knew everyone else was. They had told him so and invited him to hang out with them if he felt up to it. The moment he entered the lounge, he saw three different people crouch down in front of him. 

“Buddy, what’s the matter?” Shiro asked gently. Keith looked at his socked feet and shrugged shyly.

“I, uh… the lactose intolerant thing…” Keith mumbled. Shiro was used to the mumbling when Keith admitted something that he needed or wanted. The black paladin frowned as he went through the things Keith had eaten recently, his eyes widening when he remembered the yogurt.

“Oh, Keith, you didn’t have to eat that if you knew it would hurt you.” Shiro said softly. 

“I didn’t want to look rude by not eating it.” Keith said. “Besides, I’m fine.” He added. Shiro shook his head and sighed. 

“Buddy, no one is gonna be mad at you or think you’re rude because you didn’t eat something you knew would hurt you.” Shiro said gently. “Hunk would have understood. And you’re not okay, you don’t have to just deal with this alone anymore.” He said, setting Keith up on a couch. Kolivan whimpered softly and looked at Keith in worry.

“What do you mean, has he dealt with this alone before?” He asked. Shiro glanced at Keith and smiled.

“Do you mind if I tell them, buddy? I told you that everything you tell me in confidence wouldn’t leave me, and I’ll keep to that if you tell me no.” Shiro said. Keith thought for a moment and nodded, burying himself in Krolia’s side. Shiro nodded and turned back to the group of paladins and Galra that had gathered.

“Right. After Keith’s dad died, he was put into something that humans call foster care. It’s when a family gets money from the government to house kids who are orphans or who are taken from their parents for one reason or another. Some of the families are actually nice and caring, but there are also some that are just in it for the money and don’t really take care of the kids. Keith told me that he had a few families that never really cared about the fact that he was lactose intolerant, and never tried to get him a lactose free alternative or avoid giving him dairy and stuff like that. So, Keith got used to just eating dairy and dealing with the effects, which are unfortunately awful.” Shiro explained. All of the Galra were whimpering in distress for their kit, resisting the urge to go cuddle him half to death. 

“Oh, my poor kit.” Krolia whimpered, hugging Keith gently. Keith leaned his head against Krolia’s shoulder, whimpering and perking up when he saw that Antok had his mask on. 

“Cool mask.” He said before he could stop himself. Shiro smiled at the small display that showed just how young Keith was. Antok chuckled and sat next to the couch.

“Indeed, it is cool.” He said brightly. “Watch this.” He added, making the mask disappear as if it had simply evaporated. Keith perked up and looked over,

“Where’d it go? Did it just evaporate?” He asked. Antok shook his head with another chuckle.

“No. It is quite complex science, kit.” He said. 

“Tell me about it!” Keith insisted. Antok managed to distract Keith from the pain in his abdomen through explaining the complexities of the mask to Keith. 

-

Keith was clearly getting a bit more comfortable around everyone else. Of course, Shiro, Matt, or Krolia were never far, always there to give Keith a comforting and somewhat familiar people to run back to if he needed to hide himself away for a little bit. 

Ulaz and Thace had left to go after a nearby Galra ship in hopes of finding a solution to Keith’s problem. Short of kidnapping a druid, they could think of no way to find a solution unless they came across one in a ship. 

Keith had taken the chance to explore the castle and really, Shiro shouldn’t have been surprised that the first place he actually wanted to go into was the training room. He stayed nearby in case Keith needed him, but not so close that he seemed overbearing or overprotective. 

Keith walked into the training room and saw Antok and Regris play fighting, tilting his head in confusion as he watched the pair jump around and tackle each other. Or, Antok was tackling Regris and Regris was trying to tackle Antok, but failing. Without realizing it, Keith let out a playful growl, generally an indicator from Galran kits that they wanted to join in on the playtime. 

Antok and Regris paused in their wrestling, looking over at Keith. Antok smiled gently and sat up properly.

“Do you want to join us, Keith?” He asked gently. In that moment, it seemed as though Keith returned to himself. Antok and Regris watched as Keith blinked in surprise, flushing red before darting out of the room. Regris made a low, questioning whine, prompting Antok to nuzzle his cheek.

“Shh, kit. Keith is just not used to play fighting or his Galran instincts. He probably didn’t realize he indicated that he wanted to play too.” Antok explained. Regris nodded and whipped his tail back and forth, growling playfully as he darted at Antok once again.

-

Shiro was surprised when he looked up and suddenly had an armful of a small teenager. He instinctively wrapped his arms around Keith and frowned.

“Buddy, what happened?” He asked worriedly. 

“I don’t know, I just… I did something.” Keith said. 

“What’d you do? I promise, if it was bad, I guarantee that Pidge and Lance have done worse.” Shiro said. 

“I just… Antok and Regris were… fighting? And then they asked me if I wanted to join in after I made a really weird sound and I just panicked.” Keith said. Shiro nodded in understanding and smiled, coaxing Keith to look up at him.

“They were play fighting, Keith. It’s normal for Galran children and adults to do together. Do you still want to join in?” Shiro asked. Keith thought for a minute and nodded.

“I don’t wanna intrude, though.” He said. Shiro shook his head fondly and smiled.

“I promise, they won’t mind at all. Do you want me to come with you?” He asked. Keith was silent for a few moments before nodding.

“Please?” He asked shyly. Shiro smiled and nodded, urging Keith back into the training room. Keith looked back at him hesitantly, reminding Shiro once again that he was probably the first constant, reassuring presence that Keith had had since before his dad had died. Shiro gently patted his back with a smile.

“Go on,” He said softly, nudging Keith forward. Keith stumbled forward and made the same sound he had made before, attracting the two Galra’s attention once again. 

“Do you want to join in now?” Antok asked. Keith slowly nodded and let Antok tug him onto the soft mats that covered the floor of the training room so that no one got hurt. Keith jumped when he felt Regris tug on his arm with his tail, looking over in surprise.

It took a while, but Keith eventually got into the play fight. He ran around and jumped and tackled like Antok and Regris, so much so that everyone in the room was convinced that Keith was mimicking their movements. Not that they minded, though. 

Every so often, Keith would look over at Shiro as if asking if he was doing it right. Shiro would always smile encouragingly, occasionally holding two thumbs up to encourage Keith. 

It didn’t take long for Keith to get tired, having much less energy than the two Galra. Antok paused when he was pinning Keith down and heard a soft sound that definitely came from the kit, but was too soft to be a growl. 

“Are you hungry, kit?” He asked gently. Keith paused and slowly nodded, seeming shy about it. Antok smiled and scooped Keith up, dropping him on a bench and holding up a finger before walking out, coming back with one of the protein bars and a packet of water. 

“Take slow bites of this, kit. I am unsure if you can handle this at your age. It may be too rich for you.” Antok said as he handed the protein bar to Keith. Keith took slow bites of his snack and hummed in thought as he listened to Antok and Regris play fight in order to give him time to eat in peace. He looked over when he heard Shiro sit next to him.

“Are you having fun, bud?” Shiro asked curiously. Keith nodded and swallowed his food.

“Yeah. I like doing that play fighting.” Keith said. Shiro smiled and nodded.

“Yeah. I heard its normal for Galran kids to like. And you’re part Galran, so it makes sense.” He said. Keith nodded and hummed, kicking his feet lightly and grinning when he saw Krolia come in. He made a repetitive whining noise until Krolia came over and hugged him, nuzzling her nose into his hair and making a soothing rumble. 

“What is that?” Keith asked curiously.

“I do not know what you are referring to, kit.” Krolia said. 

“Those sounds. I’ve made them before, but I don’t know what they are.” Keith said. Krolia laughed softly.

“Galra have their own language that you can learn and speak, and many speak english as well, since it is a common language between all species across the universe. However, those sounds are sounds that are exclusive to Galra, and are used to communicate. The sounds you just made was calling for me to come and give you affection, and my rumbling is a sound that typically calm people.” Krolia explained.

“And the sound you made before playing with us is a sound used by kits to express their desire to join in on a game.” Antok explained. Keith nodded and sighed softly. 

“Have you made those noises before?” Antok asked. Keith nodded and shrugged.

“Yeah. I just assumed that they were weird noises I made.” Keith said. Krolia let out a distressed whine and nuzzled his hair once again.

“They are not just weird noises. They are vital for communication between Galra. Never be shy to make those noises, kit, and always use them to call for us. No Galra can resist the sounds of a kit, we will always come to care for you.” Krolia said. Keith smiled and leaned against Krolia, burying his face in her neck. Krolia smiled and got up when she heard Keith yawn, holding Keith securely. 

“Would you like to go to the lounge, your room, or my nest to sleep, kit?” She asked gently. Keith jerked himself awake and shook his head.

“I don’t need a nap, I’m not tired.” Keith said tiredly. Krolia laughed and carried him out of the room.

“Sure you aren’t, kit.” She said, holding Keith securely as she carried him to her nest. She went to lower him onto the nest before pausing as he hissed and clung to her, whimpering. Krolia settled down onto the nest and put Keith in her lap, humming softly. 

“Alright. You do what you need to in order to feel safe and secure, kit. That’s all we expect from you; to take care of yourself and make yourself feel safe.” Krolia said gently. Keith relaxed and smiled, clinging to her as he fell asleep. Krolia looked up when Kolivan came in, pointing at Keith to let the marmora leader know to keep his voice down. Kolivan nodded and sat down, purring and nuzzling Keith. Keith’s face scrunched up and he shifted before relaxing, making a soft sound that sounded like a purr, but broken and soft, his human body not made to purr. Krolia gasped and let out a proud growl, grinning widely.

Keith blinked awake when he heard Ulaz and Thace enter, making a soft noise of distress and burying himself in Krolia’s body. Krolia made the same rumbling sound, wrapping her arms around Keith to calm him down.

“Shh, kit, they won’t hurt you. They just want to see how you’re doing.” Krolia said. Keith slowly relaxed and peeked up at them, a small smile forming when he saw the two Galra. Ulaz smiled and reached out, stroking his hair.

“Hello, kit.” Thace said gently, leaning down and smiling. “Unfortunately, we didn’t find what we needed to help you, but I think we’re getting close!” He said. Keith nodded and sat up, sticking close to Krolia.

“I didn’t know I needed anything.” Keith said.

“Well, it’ll make you better.” Thace said. Keith nodded and made a questioning noise when Acxa leaned close and waved. He looked up at Krolia in confusion.

“That’s your sister, kit.” She said. Keith turned back to Acxa and waved. Acxa smiled and tried to pull him off of Krolia’s lap, but Keith whined and clung to Krolia. Acxa let go and nuzzled him, making an apologetic sound until Keith relaxed. 

“It is almost time for dinner, kit.” Krolia said, taking Keith into the dining hall with the other Galra in tow. Keith smiled when he was embraced by Shiro and Matt in greeting. He sat down and smiled when Hunk set a plate of food in front of him. He noticed that Hunk had paid attention to make sure that Keith had nothing that would make him sick. It made his stomach fill with warmth that was mostly unfamiliar to him as he ate. 

“Do you want some more, Keith?” Hunk asked when he noticed that Keith had finished and was sitting like he wanted more. Keith jumped and seemed to shrink in his seat, blushing and shaking his head. Hunk nodded, though he didn’t entirely believe Keith. 

“I think you should have a little bit more, kit. You look much too thin, even for the smaller human physique.” Krolia said, softly so that no one else around them could hear a conversation. Keith shook his head.

“No, I’m not hungry.” Keith insisted. Krolia nodded and went back to her food. Keith sat quietly until everyone was done and followed Matt out of the dining room. Matt turned around when he noticed Keith following him and smiled gently.

“Sorry, bud, but I’m afraid I can’t hang out with you right now. I gotta do some stuff for the rebels and it’s classified, so you can’t come with. If you’re still feeling up to it after I’m done, though, I’d be more than happy to hang out with you.” Matt said. Keith looked up at him and nodded after a few moments.

“Okay.” He said, but Matt knew he recognized the tone he was using. It was the tone Keith always used when he doubted that someone would keep their word.

“I promise I’ll hang out with you after I’m done, bud. You know I never break my promises.” He said. Keith smiled and nodded, trotting off to go find Shiro or Krolia. 

The first person that Keith came across was Shiro, talking with Allura. They both paused and looked over at Keith when they heard him come in. Shiro smiled and pulled Keith over.

“Keith, this is Allura. She’s an Altean. There’s another Altean here, too, his name’s Coran. He’s the man with the red hair you saw earlier.” He said. Keith waved politely and looked up at Shiro. Allura smiled and looked down at Keith.

“Hello, Keith. It’s nice to meet you.” Allura said. Keith nodded and left the room, going to find Krolia. 

Krolia smiled when Keith came in, pulling him close with a smile. She nuzzled his cheek and purred when he softly laughed. 

“That tickles a little bit.” Keith said. Krolia grinned and shoved her fingers into Keith’s sides, wiggling them. Keith immediately collapsed into a fit of laughter, trying to squirm free of the tickling. He got himself free and pouted, yawning. Krolia chuckled and laid down, laying Keith on top of her and draping a blanket over both of them. Keith laid his head on Krolia’s chest, watching as Acxa wormed her way under the blanket as well and tucked herself against Krolia’s side. Krolia wrapped an arm around both of them and rumbled until they both fell asleep. 

About a half an hour later, Matt knocked on the door and peeked in, smiling when he saw that Keith was sleeping.

“I was gonna see if he still wanted to hang out, but maybe that’s a tomorrow activity.” He said softly. Krolia nodded and smiled gently as she looked down at Keith.

“Matt… how much do you know about Keith’s life before you met him?” She asked. Matt shrugged a bit.

“A little bit, but he’s always been pretty tight-lipped about it.” Matt said.

“Is the fact that he refuses seconds a result of those foster homes?” She asked worriedly. Matt frowned and nodded sadly.

“Yeah. Like Shiro said, some of the families weren’t great, and some of them didn’t let him have seconds and some didn’t feed him enough. Shiro thinks that’s why he’s so thin, he wasn’t fed right by his fosters homes. But, the good news is, once we managed to get him to break the habit of eating just what he was given and refusing seconds, and getting him to eat at every meal, he did grow a bit more.” Matt said. Krolia whined in distressed and nuzzled Keith.

“You keep referring to multiple families, why?” Antok asked. 

“Well, from what Keith told me and Shiro, most of the homes kicked him out because he had problems with authority and discipline. So, he was bounced from foster home to foster home for a while before he came to the Garrison, and me and Shiro let him stay with us.” Matt said. Antok whined and leaned over, grooming Keith with a sad frown. 

“No wonder he’s so closed off.” Thace said. “He only really trusts you, Shiro, and Krolia. Earlier, we couldn’t interact with him unless he was clinging to Krolia otherwise he’d hiss.” He said. 

“Well, I think Keith just doesn’t want to be separated from his mom again. But yeah, he’s a little creeped out by this whole situation in general.” Matt said. Regris popped his head up from between Ulaz and Thace, frowning and whimpering. He tried to go over to Keith, but he was laid down again by Thace.

“I know you want to see him, Regris, but he will probably be shy around you.” He said gently. Regris nodded sadly and laid down.

“You and Shiro got Keith on a steady diet yourselves?” Ulaz asked. Matt couldn’t help but laugh as he shook his head.

“Oh god no. Me and Shiro were two twenty-year-old teachers who basically lived on ramen noodles because we didn’t know the first thing about nutrition for adults, much less an underweight thirteen-year-old. No, we took advice from his doctor and nutritionists and stuff like that on what to feed him and such. Yeah, Keith’s really the one who propelled us into actually making nutritious meals for the three of us, since we didn’t see the point in just making some for Keith and making something else for us.” Matt explained. 

“Keith lived with you?” Ulaz asked. Matt nodded.

“It’s a long story, but Keith was basically me and Shiro’s unofficially adopted kid. It started with him spending the night after a bad day at school and suddenly he was living with us. Our apartment guest room became his room, honestly. I think my mom and dad actually thought I had adopted a 13 year old as a twenty year old who lived off of ramen noodles for a little bit.” Matt said. Ulaz chuckled and nuzzled Keith gently, watching as the teenager rolled over with a soft giggle, burying his face in Krolia’s side as he settled back down into his sleep. Matt smiled gently as he left the room to leave Keith to sleep. 

-

The next day saw Kolivan and Antok leaving to hopefully find a solution to turn Keith back to his normal age. They were already gone when Keith awoke, clinging to the peaceful sleep for as long as he could before allowing Krolia to get him up and take him and the other two kits to the dining room for breakfast. Hunk put a plate of food in front of each of them, once again making sure Keith didn’t have anything that could make him sick, making up for it with a larger portion of the fruit Keith had seemed to like the day before. Keith perked up when he saw the food and started eating. He finished his food rather quickly, and he noticed that he already had a second, albeit slightly smaller helping near him. He glanced up to see if it was anyone else’s helping before grabbing onto the plate to pull it closer as he started to eat it as well. He only managed to finish about half of the second serving before becoming full, setting the two plates in the sink and wandering off. 

Hunk found him an hour and a half later, sitting on the floor of the hallway and seemingly playing a game of solitaire with a set of playing cards he had discovered in the lounge. 

“Whatcha doing, dude?” Hunk asked, sitting down in front of him. Keith looked up and shrugged.

“Playing solitaire.” He said softly. Hunk nodded and smiled.

“Well, that sounds pretty boring! You wanna come help me with some stuff in the kitchen?” Hunk asked. Keith looked up and must have decided that Hunk’s gentle and bright personality was trustworthy, for he willingly followed Hunk to the kitchen. He seemed fascinated by the space technology, spending a solid five minutes pressing buttons that were harmless until Hunk explained to him their function. 

“Right, you trust yourself with a knife, little dude?” He asked. Keith looked up at him and glared.

“I’m not little.” He said. 

“Okay, just dude then.” Hunk said. “So, do you trust yourself with a knife?” He asked. 

“Yeah. I have a knife collection at home. It’s pretty cool, but Shiro doesn’t let me use them without supervision. He’s a real stick in the mud about it.” Keith said.

“I’m sure it’s just to keep you safe, dude.” Hunk said, handing over a bundle of vegetables and a knife. “Dice these up into larger cubes for me, will you?” He asked. 

“How big?” Keith asked. 

“You know the size of size of an m&m?” Hunk asked. Keith nodded and looked up at him. “That big, roughly. Those don’t need to be chopped as small.” He said, keeping an eye on Keith as he chopped the vegetables and he chopped his own bundle of vegetables into smaller, more precise cubes. 

Hunk jumped when he heard a loud “ow!” from Keith. He looked over quickly, seeing Keith holding his injured finger close to his chest. Hunk pulled Keith over to the sink and turned the water on, cleaning the cut before grabbing the first aid kit that was kept in the kitchen, putting a bandaid over it.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Hunk.” Keith said and wow, that was a name that Hunk never thought he would heard out of Keith.

“You have no reason to be sorry, dude. And just call me Hunk, okay?” He said.

“But I told you I trusted myself with knives.” Keith said.

“Accidents happen sometimes, even if you’re confident in your abilities. I’m the resident cook, but you know how many times I’ve accidentally cut or burned myself?” Hunk asked. Keith shook his head, “So many times! It’s normal, okay? You have no reason to apologize. You wanna go back to helping me?” He asked. Keith nodded and smiled, going back to chopping the vegetables, much more careful this time around.

-

Lunch saw Keith enjoying a nice, hearty soup that he had helped Hunk make. Though he had only really chopped vegetables and stirred, he was proud of himself. 

Afterwards, he wandered off and found himself in the hangars, where he found Pidge hanging out with the green lion. He looked up and gasped in awe at the giant mechanical robot.

“Cool, right?” Pidge asked, jumping down from the lion’s paw. Keith nodded.

“It’s amazing! What’s it do? Does it need batteries?” He asked. Pidge laughed.

“Well, it’s like a giant airplane. I pilot it, and it accepts only me as it’s pilot. You know that giant robot Shiro told you about? Well, it forms one of the arms. It charges, in a way, through the castle.” They said.

“Can… Can I go inside?” He asked. Pidge grinned brightly. 

“Of course! Come on in!” They said, pulling Keith inside the lion. Keith gasped again when he saw the inside, the dim green lights that illuminated everything. 

“You wanna take this thing on a little joyride?” Pidge asked. Keith looked over in confusion.

“We can do that?” He asked. Pidge nodded.

“Of course we can! You wanna go see space?” They asked. Keith nodded enthusiastically, following Pidge to the pilot seat. “Sit tight, your mom would have my head if I let you get hurt.” They said. Keith nodded and held on tight as Pidge took off, leaving the hangar. Keith made a soft sound of complete awe when he saw the expanse of space that surrounded them. Twinkling stars looking much closer than they would on Earth and planets in the distance. 

Pidge spent the next hour showing Keith the tricks the lion could do until Keith was a grinning, excited mess. They landed after a bit, though, back in the hangar and leaving with Keith.

“That was amazing!” Keith said. Pidge nodded and paused when they saw a confused look on Keith’s face.

“What’s up, Keith?” They asked.

“Don’t you hear that?” Keith asked. Pidge shook their head.

“No… Keith, do you need to go see Ulaz? Did you hit your head in the lion?” Pidge asked. Keith shook his head and walked away, seemingly following the sound. Pidge followed out of curiosity, smiling when they saw Keith stop outside of the red lion’s barrier. 

“This lion is calling me… calling me it’s cub.” Keith said. Pidge shoved Keith’s shoulder with a grin.

“Dude, congrats! That means the red lion thinks you’d be a good pilot of it! The lions don’t do that to just anyone, you know.” They said. Keith looked over and grinned.

“Seriously? It chose me?” He asked. Pidge nodded confidently.

“In the future, of course. The red lion wouldn’t let someone so young pilot it right now. But, in the future, you’ll be able to access its full potential and pilot it and help form voltron!” Pidge said. Keith grinned widely, looking up at the lion in awe, gasping and stepping back when the lion laid down and nudged him with its large and cold metal snout. Although it was clearly intended to be gentle, it caused Keith to stumble. Pidge laughed and patted the lion’s metal exterior.

“You gotta be more gentle, big guy.” They said. The lion made a purr that reverberated off of the walls of the hangar. Keith looked up and smiled. He looked over when he heard the doors of the hangar open and he was surrounded by three different people. 

“We’ve been looking for you everywhere, Keith!” Matt said. Keith tilted his head.

“I’ve been in here for a while.” He said. Shiro sighed softly and paused when he noticed how happy Keith looked.

“What happened, buddy?” He asked. Keith looked over at the red lion and made a soft purring sound.

“The red lion chose me as a pilot in the future!” He said. 

“That’s great, buddy!” Shiro said excitedly. Keith nodded and made a noise of confusion when Krolia picked him up, instinctively latching onto her shirt. Krolia rubbed his back and carried him out of the hangars. Keith made a noise of protest and looked up at her in confusion. Krolia smiled down at him.

“It is time to relax for a bit, my kit. You gave us quite a scare when you disappeared.” Krolia said.

“I didn’t mean to scare you guys.” Keith said apologetically. 

“I know you didn’t, kit. All if forgiven, I assure you.” Krolia said, carrying him to the lounge and laying him down on the couch. Keith looked up when Lance flopped next to him. 

“Wanna hang out with good ol’ Lancey-Lance?” Lance asked brightly. Keith frowned and tilted his head.

“Who’s Lance?” Keith asked. Lance frowned and pouted.

“Me, of course! Wow, Keith, you don’t even remember your own old classmate?” He asked playfully. 

“Your name’s not Lance.” Keith insisted. Before Lance could respond, Matt had collapsed into laughter, leaning against Shiro as he gasped for air. Shiro was struggling to keep a straight face as well.

“What’re you guys laughing about?” Pidge asked curiously. Shiro gestured for them to came closer, leaning down to whisper in their ear.

“So, you know how Lance tried to make up the nickname ‘the tailor’ for himself at the Garrison? Well, that’s all Keith remembered him by and doesn’t know his name is actually Lance.” Shiro whispered to them, covering his mouth with a hand to muffle his laughter when Pidge started snickering. 

“Well then what, pray tell, is my name?” Lance asked. 

“Taylor.” Keith said matter-of-factly. Lance stared at him in silence.

“That’s so far from my name it’s not even funny.” Lance eventually said, slightly offended that Keith didn’t know his name. Keith frowned and looked away.

“Well, so fucking sorry, then. I thought that was your name.” Keith said. 

“How the hell did you think my name was Taylor?” Lance asked.

“I just did, okay?!” Keith snapped, getting up and darting out of the room. 

“Oh, good job, Lance. You scared him off. We were doing so well getting him to feel comfortable, too.” Pidge said as they watched Keith leave the room. 

“I… I didn’t mean to. I just wanted to know.” Lance said.

“Yeah, well, actual Keith may be able to tell between your insistent questions and hostility, but young Keith probably can’t.” Pidge said. Lance frowned and followed Matt to go find Keith. 

Matt eventually found Keith with the red lion, sitting inside the lion’s barrier and against it’s metallic body. He was getting shoved by the lion’s metallic tongue that was licking him, but Keith didn’t seem to mind. 

“Keith, bud, can you get red to let us in? We just wanna talk to you.” Matt said. Keith looked up at the lion and mumbled something, but what exactly it was seemed to let the barrier down.

“Red says they’re gonna put it back up and shove you out if you’re mean.” Keith said. 

“Perfectly understandable, Keith.” Matt said softly. Lance sat down next to Matt and smiled.

“I’m sorry, Keith. I didn’t mean to scare you. I just wanted to know how you thought my name was Taylor. I just ask things insistently, it wasn’t meant to seem angry and I’m sorry if it seemed that way.” Lance said gently. Keith huffed and looked away.

“You always called yourself the Taylor, so I thought that was your name.” He said. Lance stared at him for a second before starting to laugh.

“Stop laughing at me!” Keith snapped. Both Lance and Matt watched in shock as Keith’s skin developed a light purple undertone rather than the usual pink, his teeth sharpened, and his eyes got a yellow tint. They glanced at each other.

“Keith, I wasn’t laughing at you. I was laughing at how utterly bizarre the whole situation was.” Lance said, helping Keith up and pulling him over to Krolia. Krolia gasped when she saw Keith’s appearance and pulled him close. 

“You have Galra features!” She said, purring proudly and pulling Keith to the nest. Everyone looked over at him and gasped when they saw him.

“Kit!” Antok said, coming over and nuzzling Keith happily, purring. “You looked like a Galra.” He said, holding up a mirror for Keith to see. Keith looked into the mirror and gasped, looking at himself. As he calmed down, he went back to usual appearance and laid down on Krolia’s lap, exhausted. Krolia smiled and rubbed his back, draping a blanket over him and rumbling to Keith until he fell asleep. 

-

Keith woke up feeling out of it. It reminded him of when he had gotten the flu at the Garrison, and he longed to find Matt and Shiro so they could nurse him back to health in the same way they had when he had gotten it. 

The pair had, despite Keith’s protests, taken the entire week that Keith had been sick off of their teaching jobs at the school. They had stayed in their apartment with Keith, letting him lay on the couch and watch TV, bundled in what seemed like every blanket they had in the apartment, then some that Keith suspected had been snuck from the Garrison. 

Shiro was a disaster when it came to anything in the kitchen, so Matt had taken the opportunity to make Keith some soup. He had heard Matt on the phone with his mom, getting the recipe for a soup that she always made for anyone in the Holt house that was sick.

The soup had tasted amazing, but light enough on his stomach that it didn’t make him sick.

Shiro and Matt had sat with him and kept him company. Every few hours, Shiro would take his temperature and give him medicine if it was required. It had been the only times during the week that Matt and Shiro had been rough with him, having to hold him down lest he run off to avoid taking the medicine. 

“Mom?” Keith called out when he realized where he was. Krolia looked down at him and smiled.

“Yes, my kit?” She asked gently.

“I don’t feel well.” Keith said. Krolia frowned and put a hand on his forehead.

“Well, you do feel abnormally warm.” She said. She leaned over and nudged Ulaz, gesturing him over and gently turning Keith to the doctor. Ulaz leaned close and smiled.

“You just have a typical human flu, kit. Everything will be fine, I promise.” He said. Keith nodded and smiled, laying back down. Ulaz grabbed his datapad and looked at him.

“What type of shows do you like to watch, kit?” He asked. Keith shrugged.

“I really like stuff about the paranormal.” Keith said. Ulaz nodded and pulled up a show about mothman that Keith had enjoyed, handing it to the boy. Keith brightened up and watched quietly, purring when he felt all the members of the pack gather around him to keep him safe and happy. 

-

It was a few hours later that Lance came in with a bowl of soup for Keith. Keith smiled and sat up, eating quietly and hissing when Lance offered him medicine. Lance smiled and crouched down.

“Why don’t you wanna take the medicine, Keith?” Lance asked gently. 

“It tastes bad.” Keith said softly. Lance thought for a moment before smiling.

“Well, why don’t we hide the taste?” Lance asked.

“How do you do that?” Keith asked curiously. 

“You liked the food goo, right?” Lance asked. Keith nodded a bit and watched as Lance left the room, coming back with a spoon of food goo. He took the pill and tucked it into the food goo.

“Here, eat this and just swallow it. You’ll never even know there was anything else in it.” Lance said, handing Keith the spoon. Keith ate the spoonful of food goo and smiled.

“How did you know to do that, Lance?” Kolivan asked curiously.

“Well, I have some little siblings and cousins and and nephew that didn’t want to take medicine, so we would do the same thing with pudding, which is a treat that had the same texture as food goo.” Lance said. Kolivan nodded and smiled, nuzzling Keith and making a noise of surprise when Keith crawled on top of him and laid down.

“Looks like our kit found his spot for the next while.” Antok said. Lance smiled.

“Get well soon, Keith.” He said, leaving the room. Kolivan wrapped his arms around Keith, rumbling lightly in hopes of soothing Keith. 

“Why do you like to lay on people, kit? It is welcomed, but I am curious.” Thace said. Keith shrugged and laid his head on Kolivan’s chest, relaxing.

“I don’t know. It makes me feel protected and safe, I guess.” Keith whispered. Thace nodded and smiled.

“Well, never hesitate to do that if you want to feel protected or just want to relax, kit. We will never turn you away.” Thace said, remembering all the times he had walked into the training room to find Antok instructing blades while holding onto Keith while the kit slept against his chest, or all the times he’d seen Ulaz in the medical bay, working with Keith sleeping on his back. Keith nodded and nestled under his blanket, relaxing as he drifted to sleep. 

-

Keith was awoken by a gentle hand shaking his shoulder. His eyes blinked open and he rubbed at his eyes with a fist, making a noise of confusion.

“Sorry for waking you, kit. I just need to take your temperature to make sure your fever is going down.” Ulaz said softly. Keith pouted tiredly for a moment before obediently opening his mouth, wanting to get back to sleep as soon as possible. His lips closed around the thermometer and he waited until it beeped, laying back down on top of Kolivan. Ulaz smiled as he looked at the thermometer.

“Looks like your fever is going down, kit. Go ahead and go back to sleep.” Ulaz said, pulling the blanket over Keith and tucking him in. He chuckled softly when he saw one of Keith’s fists close around Kolivan’s braid in a death grip. Kolivan smiled and let Keith hang onto the braid. He would never understand it, but Keith always seemed to latch onto something when he fell asleep on someone. For him, it was his braid. For Antok, it was his tail. For Ulaz, it was the white tuft of fur on his head. For Thace, it was one of his ears. For Krolia, it was the longer chunk of hair that Lance had referred to as a ‘rattail’. They didn’t mind, of course, but it did become uncomfortable if he decided to yank. 

Krolia reached over and ran her fingers through Keith’s hair, purring lightly as Keith shifted and made a noise of content. Acxa came over and nuzzled Keith, making a noise that conveyed her concern for her younger twin. 

“He will be fine, my kit. Shiro and Matt should find a solution today, if all goes well.” Krolia said. Acxa nodded and crawled into her mom’s lap, whining softly until she was comfortable, starting to purr. 

Regris came over and whined loudly until Antok pulled him close, only really craving attention as he purred happily, his tail waving back and forth lazily out of content. 

-

Keith was awoken yet again by Ulaz, the smell of soup greeting his nostrils. He looked up and smiled, sitting up slowly as Ulaz gave him the bowl.

“Where’s Shiro and Matt?” Keith asked.

“They are out on a mission, my kit.” Antok said. Keith pouted for an almost imperceptible moment.

“Are they gonna come back soon?” He asked. Antok nodded and smiled, yawning and laying down with Regris to sleep. Krolia, Acxa and Thace were asleep as well. As soon as Keith finished his soup, Ulaz went back to sleep as well, leaving Kolivan and Keith as the only two awake. Keith reached up hesitantly and traced Kolivan’s scar that ran the length of his face.

“If you don’t mind me asking, how did you get this?” Keith asked. Kolivan smiled gently.

“A battle a long time ago, my kit.” He said. Keith nodded, staying silent for a few moments.

“Does it ever hurt?” He asked eventually.

“Not anymore. But, I’m sure if it did, I could always go to Ulaz.” Kolivan answered reassuringly. Keith nodded and laid back down, purring quietly as he hesitantly nuzzled Kolivan. Kolivan smiled and purred lightly to encourage him. 

-

Keith looked up when Shiro entered the room, smiling brightly. 

“Shiro!” He exclaimed, getting up and hugging the man tightly. Shiro smiled and wrapped his arms around Keith.

“Hey, buddy. Did you have a good time hanging out with Krolia’s pack today?” Shiro asked gently. Keith nodded tiredly and smiled.

“I was sick, but I’m okay now.” Keith said. Shiro nodded.

“I’m sure Ulaz took good care of you.” Shiro said. Keith nodded happily and grinned when Matt came in, hugging him tightly. 

 

“I missed you guys.” Keith said. Matt smiled and hugged Keith.

“I missed you too, little buddy.” Matt said. “I need you to drink this, okay?” He said, showing Keith a bottle of clear liquid that could almost be mistaken for water. 

“Why?” Keith asked curiously. 

“It’ll make you feel better.” Matt said simply. Keith looked at the bottle suspiciously and shook his head. 

“No, I don’t want to.” Keith said, leaning back against Thace to try and get away from the bottle. Thace turned him to face Matt, rumbling soothingly as Matt pressed the bottle to his lips. Keith pressed his lips shut, trying to turn his head away desperately. Ulaz tilted his head and smiled, going over to Keith’s clothes and grabbing a shirt and soft pants, picking Keith up and carrying him into another room. Keith came back out wearing clothes that belonged to adult Keith, much too big on him. The pants were hanging inches past his feet and the drawstrings were pulled tight to keep them on his hips.

“So he doesn’t have to hassle with the other clothes.” Ulaz explained. Matt nodded and offered the bottle to Keith again.

“Please drink this, Keith.” Matt said gently. “I promise, it’ll help you.” He said gently. Lance came in and smiled at Keith, chuckled when he saw Keith trying to avoid ingesting the liquid. 

“How much of that does he have to drink?” Lance asked curiously.

“Just a few sips, I think.” Matt said. “My translations are a little bad, but I think it said only a small amount was required.” Lance nodded and thought for a moment.

“Can it be mixed with anything?” He asked. Matt shook his head sadly.

“No. If it could, I would have tricked Keith by mixing it with some juice.” Matt said. Lance nodded and took the bottle, disappearing for a moment before returning with a small glass of water. He sat down with Keith and offered him the glass.

“Okay, you don’t have to drink the medicine right now. But, we would prefer if you stayed hydrated while you were sick so that you don’t get dehydrated. Being dehydrated sucks, kiddo.” Lance said. Keith nodded and drank the water, not seeing any reason not to believe Lance.

In reality, Lance had taken advantage of the fact that the solution looked identical to water in order to trick Keith into drinking it.

-

You could have blinked and missed it, in Antok’s opinion. A full-grown Keith was sitting in front of the group, blinking in confusion as he looked around. 

“You tricked me!” He exclaimed to Lance. Lance nodded and hugged him close, kissing his cheek.

“Yes, but I wanted you back, babe. We all did. I missed you. Kid you was nice and fun and all, but I missed your slightly rude attitude.” Lance said. Keith smiled and lounged against Lance’s chest, purring happily. He ears flicked and he looked up at the others in the room. 

“Hey, kit.” Krolia said, sitting down and grooming Keith calmly. Keith smiled and suddenly paused. 

“How much did my kid self tell you?” He asked. Hunk smiled sadly as he came in with Pidge.

“You didn’t really tell us much. But Matt and Shiro did, after you gave them permission to give us details about your life. They told us what we needed to know to understand some of the things you did.” Hunk said. Keith nodded and sighed softly, leaning against Antok.

“I didn’t really want to tell you anything about the foster homes, really.” Keith said softly. Pidge nodded in understanding and sat down next to him. 

“I get that. And trust me when I say that none of us will use what we were told against you, and we’ll never push you to share anything if you don’t want to. You could tell one of us something about that and I think I speak for everyone when I say it’ll never be repeated unless you tell us we can tell someone else.” Pidge said. Keith relaxed and clung to Antok, letting his ears flick and his tail wag lazily back and forth and wrap itself around Regris’ tail to keep his older brother close. He laughed when he felt Acxa insistently nuzzle him, looking over and nuzzling her calmly. 

It was a well known fact that Keith was a very affectionate person with his pack. At the marmora headquarters, he could often be found tagging along with a member of his pack or being carried around. To humans, he would definitely be considered spoiled by some people. But, for Galra, his treatment would be considered completely normal. Keith loved tagging along with his pack, often asleep on their backs or being carried by them. 

Keith looked over when he felt Lance’s jacket being draped over his shoulders. Lance had wrapped his jacket around Keith since he knew Keith enjoyed wearing it. Keith grinned and clung to the soft, worn out but well-loved material of the jacket, balling his fists in the material and purring in content. He felt his favorite heated blanket being draped over him, already set to a low setting.

“Rest, my kit. We will be here when you wake up.” Krolia said, kissing Keith’s forehead and laying him down in the nest. Keith tugged insistently on Lance’s shirt until he laid down next to him. Keith rolled over and purred as he nestled against Lance’s side, his head resting on the blue paladin’s chest, wrapping his tail around Lance’s waist and flicking the end affectionately against Lance’s cheek. Lance chuckled and wrapped an arm around Keith, rubbing his back gently as he felt the other start to drift off to sleep.

“It’s good to have you back, babe.” Lance said softly, burying his face in Keith’s hair.

“I like being back.” Keith said softly, yawning and slowly falling asleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Check out my tumblr legendary-marmorans


End file.
